Skeletons
by haints
Summary: Kenshin slowly comes to a realization that people are just as alone as he is. One-shot.


A/N: Hello, everybody! It has been ages since I last wrote (and uploaded) a story here on F F . net. But I have always been around, searching, _favoriting_ (ugh, is that even a word?) and re-reading numerous awesome stories and authors here; in other words, yes I'm a lurker and guilty as hell. _Rurouni Kenshin_ was my first love (believe it or not, it has played a great part in forming the beliefs I hold dear), and I will always happily find myself returning it. I'm glad to be back now with a one-shot, though if it can be worked into being a multi-chapter, we'll see. The story was not _beta-read_ but I tried my hardest hard to eliminate all the grammatical errors I could find.

Below are the Japanese terms I used within the story, not included were the honorifics; I'm not a native speaker so if have used any of it incorrectly please do not hesitate tell me.

Agedashi – cubed tofu that is lightly dusted with potato starch and then deep fried  
Chashu –barbecued or braised pork, often prepared as a topping on ramen  
Hai – "yes"  
Iya – "no," less formal  
Ramen - a Japanese noodle soup dish  
Santoku – an all-purpose kitchen knife  
Shoji – Japanese sliding doors  
Soba – thin noodles made of buckwheat  
Tanuki – raccoon; Kaoru is fondly called this by her closest friends

Off to the story now!

* * *

 **Skeletons**  
Summary: Kenshin slowly comes to a realization that people are just as alone as he is.

* * *

"Goodnight and thank you for coming Minori- _san_. Please do be careful on your way home," Kenshin smiled warmly at the elderly man, one of the old regulars, who was adjusting the trilby on the top of his head.

"Thank you too Himura- _san_ , your ramen always provides good warmth," he replied, disengaging from the bar stool and gathering his bag before marching out of the establishment.

As soon as the last customer of the day exited the sliding doors, Kenshin let out a sigh. He collected the previously used chinaware, washed them, and arranged them gingerly on the drying tray. Kenshin reached for an old cloth down below the ancient cash registry and began wiping the bar, his hand moving back and forth with trained grace and slight weariness.

It was finally closing time for a tiring day for the small, old-fashioned, if a bit rundown noodle house that 42 year-old ex-detective Kenshin Himura owned and managed. It was located along a small backstreet in downtown Tokyo, its traditional façade seemingly out of place in juxtaposition to the exponentially progressing modern and technological world. The restaurant was not extravagant; in fact it was in its original condition from when he first acquired it ten years ago; the _shoji_ doors at the entrance glided less smoothly, the kitchen small albeit practical, and the furniture were a little chipped, although Kenshin maintained them with relentless cleaning and careful handling. He looked around at the empty restaurant, noticed that one of the overhanging lamps was dimming and needed to be replaced soon. Yes, his noodle house was not much, it was not highly popular, especially against the more elaborate and lavish restaurants littered liberally in the city, but a steady amount of people come regularly. It was enough to put a roof over his head and sustain his day-to-day expenses, and for that he would always be prodigiously appreciative.

The small, red door of the kitchen opened slightly and one of Kenshin's kitchen help snuck her head through it.

"Himura- _san_ , the kitchen is all cleaned and Aoshi- _san_ has stowed tomorrow's produce in the fridge. He left already, by the way," the girl informed him meekly, her head in its customary semi-bowed position, "I'll be on my way too, do you need anything else here?"

" _Iya_ , Tsubame- _chan_ , you can go now. I know that you're exams are a week from now and this one wants you to have the time to prepare aptly for them,'' he said gently before gesturing for her to continue on her way. "Thank you and have a safe trip home."

" _Hai_. You too Himura- _san_ ," Tsubame nodded and smiled politely before finally leaving.

Kenshin heard the back door screeched open then closed as he was securing the locks on the main entrance of the restaurant. He walked to the far end of the floor and switched off the central control for the lights before retreating to the kitchen. A trickle of sweat slid slowly down his temple and Kenshin noted that the evening was more humid than usual. He peered at the window, the trees were swaying with the wind to the east and the gray ill-defined clouds that were low on the sky were obviously heavy with condensation.

He grabbed a yellow folding umbrella that was stored in one of the overhead cabinets and wished briefly that Tsubame had one of her own. Aoshi, also one of his kitchen help, always carried with him a long sturdy coat so Kenshin knew he needed to worry less about him. Aoshi, his one-time adversary when he was still a detective working for the government and maybe a friend, was after all a practical man who could always take care of himself and would be no doubt unperturbed by something as trivial as rain.

Hand on the knob, ready and anxious to go home before the clouds' liquid crystals fall, Kenshin was about to walk out when his eyes fell on the small calendar nailed on the door.

"April 18, 2016, Tuesday" Kenshin read almost inaudibly the date three days from today and suddenly a remembrance swelled in his chest.

Three days from today was _her_ tenth death anniversary.

Ten years since his blind pursuit for equality and justice ruined _her_ and all that _she_ could have been. Ten years since that fateful and oh so sorrowful day that gnawed secretly at his heart and ceaselessly repeated in his nightmares. Ten years since he learned the art of constructing tall, blue, inscrutable walls that keep people at a safe distance from the ex-murderer inside him and the peril that haunted him and everyone he held dear.

He closed his eyes, it was an ancient memory; the ache may not have been as raw as before but the hollow in his heart remained.

The rain began to fall outside in a loud staccato bringing Kenshin to the present. Releasing a weighty sigh, he made a mental note to visit the old and reliable flower shop on the 7th Ishikima Street to order for a dozen blue irises.

Kenshin sensed her presence as soon as he exited the establishment and opened the yellow umbrella above his head. She was running along the alley behind the restaurant, her beige jacket held above her head as a makeshift shield against the unexpected rain. She looked up at him, recognition spread across her features, her damp bangs plastered to her forehead, and her eyes alit with welcomed surprise.

"Kaoru- _dono_! Please get in here," Kenshin said a little hurriedly, running up to meet her and angling the umbrella over their heads in a manner that sheltered the whole of her while his left shoulder began soaking in the rain. "A cotton jacket isn't a good substitute to umbrella as you think it is, that it is not."

"Kenshin!" she called to him, a little breathless but smiling widely, brightly, "the weather forecast this morning failed to mention this sudden downpour so naturally I didn't bring an umbrella." She wrung her jacket in front of her, extracting from it the absorbed moisture.

"My father always reminded me to bring one, dark clouds or none, but I never listened," a pause, then asked before she could stop herself, "Are you on your way home?"

"Yes, and this one assumes so are you Kaoru- _dono_?"

"Actually I'm not. I came here to have a drink but seeing that you're closed, well, that's not plausible now."

"Oh, this one is sorry, and would have stayed later have I known that you'll be coming, Kaoru- _dono_ ," Kenshin said, his voice, although still polite, was raised marginally in hopes of overcoming the rain that was beginning to become torrential.

"Don't apologize, it's okay,'' Kaoru shook her head vigorously, the action making the water from her hair to slightly fall around her. "Maybe some other time," she added, seeming a bit hesitant.

Kenshin hummed, and with an unspoken agreement, the pair began walking towards the general direction of Kaoru's home. He need not offer; she need not to hear. Kaoru knew that with Kenshin's profound and ubiquitous sense of honor and courteousness, he would escort her so she gets home safe and dry, especially in a night like this, even if she protested against it vehemently. The conservative man who cooked incredibly velvety _soba_ and fried _agedashi_ tofu to a crispy perfection had limitless kindness, this Kaoru had established ever since she became a regular at his restaurant one year ago.

They walked silently for a few minutes, the rainwater created ankle deep puddles on the side of the road and made the orange light of the lamppost look hazy. Kaoru's pants were soaked and she pulled on the hems as they trod along.

"If you don't mind me asking, Kaoru- _dono_ , why did you want to drink? Is something the matter?" Kenshin asked suddenly, his eyes narrowed, focused on something ahead of them.

She did not answered immediately, instead bowed her head and opened her mouth soundlessly.

"N-no reason actually, uhm, I just want to…," Kaoru finally said a moment later, the trail in her thoughts a sign of her obvious unsureness. "I just want to drink, you know. It was a long day at work, that's all. I love teaching but it can get truly tiresome sometime."

There were three things Kenshin knew for certain about the 29 year-old university professor standing beside him. One: for all the days that Kaoru had been in his restaurant, which was thrice a week at most, she had requested from him an alcoholic beverage only once; it was in the middle of April last year, when trees were vividly green and flower petals carpeted the street, she came in faintly inattentive to his usual casual greeting and with a contrived smile that seemed out of place in her usually pleasant and honest demeanor. Two: she could not handle her liquor. Three: Kaoru was a never good liar.

Whatever retort Kenshin had to stay was cut short when he noticed the headlights of a vehicle coming along their way; he could tell it was not travelling fast and he noted that there were less and shallower puddles around them at this part of the road but still the heavily falling rain and the passage of the upcoming vehicle might splash a great deal of water and maybe mud to Kaoru. So he stepped forward and maneuvered her gently to his left side.

Kaoru looked up at him and smiled as Kenshin transferred the wooden hook handle of the umbrella to his left hand. The momentary illumination from the passing vehicle's headlight allowed Kaoru to see the scar on his left cheek and the raised keloid scar from what was understandably a very long wound on his forearm. She tried averting her gaze, but it was too late; he saw the emotions that rapidly shifted in her azure eyes- hurt, a bit of loneliness perhaps…pity? He hoped not.

"I'm sorry,'' she said automatically, her eyes travelled to the muddy path but then quickly looked up at him again.

"It's all right; it's really nothing Kaoru- _dono._ Please don't worry," Kenshin replied quietly and remained wordless for some time, the empty smile pasted on his face and the unfocused deep violet eyes told Kaoru that he wished to say nothing more on the subject.

Kaoru sighed, just like that the wall that Kenshin had so efficiently erected around himself just got one more brick taller. There would always be something about the man whose guarded eyes held ancient grief, whose universal benevolence extended as deep as his guilt, and whose immense, undisclosed loneliness had made him so gentle, that she may never know about. Something he was not willing to share, maybe not yet, maybe not ever.

The rain weakened to a drizzle, they turned left to a more lighted street and Kaoru spotted her apartment complex a few meters ahead of them. She halted all of a sudden and met the expectant gaze of Kenshin as he turned to look at her.

"I was so wrong when I asked you about it before and I'm sorry," she said, this time without a hint of hesitation. "I know we all have things in the past we don't want to talk about, and…and I will tell you this again as I have told you many times: whatever you were or you were not before, I don't care. _I never will_." Kaoru finished, the words tumbling out of her mouth hastily, she was afraid she would run out of courage to say it all. "You do not need to be alone."

"Please don't forget that Kenshin," she spoke again, a little breathless, after a few heartbeats.

Kenshin watched wordlessly as Kaoru quickly run past him, towards her house, and for one unguarded moment, his eyed held the unspeakable self-blame and anguish that were ten years in the making. _April 18_ , he thought to himself and he was reminded of what he had lost before…and what he could lose again this time.

* * *

"What are you still doing in here?" were the first words that left Aoshi's mouth as he stepped out of the kitchen and into the dining hall, his finger raised, pointed at the short redhead behind the counter. The lunchtime rush was over an hour ago and majority of the restaurant's clientele had already departed.

"I'm almost done with this, Aoshi," Kenshin smiled before replying, he didn't looked up at the taller man and instead picked up a newly washed china bowl, wiped it dry, and arranged it carefully on the counter along with the other chinaware and glasses. "This one will check the inventory for tomorrow and then I'll lea-"

"I can handle the restaurant for the rest of the day. Be on your way now, Himura," Aoshi cut him off, his voice though quite was stern. He quickly paced behind the bar, invading the small space, and grabbed the white cloth at Kenshin's hand, continuing his work as he spoke. "The flowers are at the back, arranged in a basket as you have requested."

Kenshin nodded slowly, aware that Aoshi had given him a well-meaning order rather than a request. He had known the quiet, reclusive, but highly intelligent man for so long and the tone he had used on him meant that this was not an argument he could win should he try to start one. Disentangling the apron from his waist, Kenshin was about to exit the hall when the _shoji_ door was slid recklessly and a voice, familiar and dynamic called out to him.

"Yo Kenshin my man, where you heading to eh?"

"Hello Sano, well, I'm just on my way out," Kenshin said, turning around to face the young man, who had an unruly hair that somehow suited him in a natural and easy manner, standing on the foyer of the restaurant. His arm was carelessly draped around the shoulder of a clearly much younger brunette who had a backpack and was wearing a sweatshirt with the logo of the nearby university where Kaoru taught history. The college student's arm was wound around Sano's waist and she was perusing the menu overhead.

Every time Sano came in he always had a new girlfriend, Kenshin deduced.

"What can I do for you, Sano?" he inquired as he walked toward the pair with an age difference of 9 years. He glanced at the clock and spoke again. "It's bit early for a drink, that it is."

"O hey ice block," Sano gestured to Aoshi, who acknowledged him with a tilt of his head and remained intent on his current task, before shifting, with a wide grin, to regard the redhead standing near him. "No Kenshin, I'm not here to drink, 'sides it was poker night last night and fuck it I lost some dough, so, no. I came here 'coz I was looking for Jou- _chan_."

"Did something bad happen to Kaoru- _dono_?" He asked almost instantly at the mention of her nickname, his voice suddenly quiet, and those who knew him well would have noticed the slight quiver in it.

"Whoa buddy no! Why would you think that?" Sano looked at him, a bit of amusement etched on his face. "I need to do something for Jou- _chan_ today so I went to check her at the U but her co-teachers said she left an hour early. I thought maybe she'd stop by here so I came," he paused briefly and looked up thoughtfully. "Oh well, I guess she' done it without me."

"Done what, Sano?" He was looking at him with intent, brows furrowed in what looked like worry.

"Nah, just some errand, so dontcha worry, Kenny-boy," he waved his hand dismissively, his smile reassuring and real. "I better get going then. I might still be able to catch up to her."

He was a little uneasy. Kenshin wanted more details but desisted asking, after all what Kaoru did outside of her relationship with him and in her private life shouldn't be his business, should it? He let go of the breath he wasn't aware he's holding and finally managed a weak smile at the retreating figure of the young man who could have been easily his best friend.

"You should go," Aoshi's voice drifted from behind him. He nodded and exited through the back door, a basketful of blue irises cradled in his hands.

* * *

The sinking feeling in his stomach grew in intensity with every step he took on the cobblestoned path leading to the grave. Kenshin let his gaze wander around: the sunbeams that filtered through the leaves of the old oak tree shone at the name carved in soft cursive on the marble headstone, the red roof of the church on top of a low hill in the distance easily recognizable against the blue backdrop of the sky, and the lushly green grass underneath his feet smelled faintly of petrichor. Slowly, he knelt, a sudden internal heaviness pulling him down. Kenshin closed his eyes and clasped his hands together, his lips muttering a prayer starting with accepted and self-magnified guilt to regrets stacked up as high as a mountain and culminating in appeals for forgiveness answered by and in silence.

He opened his eyes, it was an ancient memory; the ache may not have been as raw as before but the hollow in his heart remained.

* * *

Stuffing his hands on his jacket, Kenshin came to an inexplicable realization that it took less time walking away from the grave than going to it even though he took the same footpath on both trips. He was tossing the idea around in his mind and he was steadily walking towards the nearing cemetery entrance, his head bowed, when sounds drifted in the air.

"—aught me well…,'' were the first distinguishable words he heard, he stopped on his tracks and listened more carefully, finally locating the source of the sound behind a wide tree to his right. His heart paced a tiny bit faster; he knew that voice, he would recognize it _anywhere_.

Kenshin moved closer, hiding behind the trunk and away from the woman's line of sight.

"I'll come back with more stories to tell. Wait for me, hm?" Kaoru stood up and dusted her pants. She gathered her purse from the ground, paused and turned for a final look at the grave, before leaving. Kenshin listened for the sound of fading footsteps, inferring that she was in a considerable distance from where he was, before he stepped out of the shadowed part of the tree and observed Kaoru. He couldn't see her face but her hair was down from its customary neat pony tail and it swayed gently with the wind. She was wearing a black turtle neck blouse, fitted slacks, and flat ballet shoes. She walked unusually slowly albeit her eyes focused forward. She never looked back; Kenshin watched until she was a fuzzy speck in the horizon.

Kenshin walked over to the grave Kaoru was previously talking to and read the epitaph.

 _Koshijirou Kamiya  
_ _March 23, 1957 – April 18, 2009._ _Blessed to us is the memory of your unselfish love._

 _Her father,_ Kenshin guessed, his brows deeply furrowed in a vain attempt to picture the man whom Kaoru had held in high pedestal; he taught her unwearyingly that the fundamental reason of a sword was to protect life, he showed her by example the inexhaustible power of kindness, and led her to trust in the good inherent to all men, no matter who he was or where he came from. The genesis of Kaoru's incalculable compassion and unconditional acceptance lied here.

His eyes fell to the adjacent graves and noticed with swiftly increasing apprehension that three more tombstones looked exactly alike Koshijirou Kamiya's. He approached them and read the epitaph, one-by-one- horror racing in his consciousness like an avalanche.

 _Arima Kamiya  
_ _December 15, 1955 - April 18, 2009._ _Devoted wife, mother, sister, and friend._

 _Mayan Kamiya  
_ _January 18, 1992 - April 18, 2009. F_ _or death begins with life's first breath and life begins at touch of death._

 _Jirin Kamiya  
_ _November 06, 1999 - April 18, 2009._ _A little flower of love that blossomed but to die, now above, blooming with God._

Kenshin's world narrowed into a singular horrendous comprehension that Kaoru had lost all of her family in a single fateful day. He closed his eyes, her smile the first to materialize from the whirling pool of midnight black, blood red, deep blue and snowy white that was his memory, then came a carefree laughter, then eyes that held no judgment, then ribbons floating in the breeze, then an extended hand reaching out to him in the depths.

"Ken- _san_?"

He quickly turned around and behind him stood a stunned Megumi, concealed suspiciousness tainting her features. "What are you doing here? Did you come here with Kaoru? Where is she?"

The doctor wasted no time launching a tirade of questions while she bent down to lay flowers on each of the four gravestones. She was still wearing her scrub suit and rubber sneakers, Kenshin noted, and her hair which was usually immaculately flowing down her back was tied in a ponytail evidently tied haphazardly. Kaoru's close friend walked up to face him, still clearly in disbelief.

"I was supposed to come along with her here today but I got caught up in the OR. I did not want her to come here alone," she explained, pausing pensively and jerking her head towards the direction of the gravestones. "So she has told you then, huh, the fate of her family?"

"No, she didn't, Megumi- _dono_ ," Kenshin spoke quietly, shaking his head a little, "I saw her here coincidentally and when she left, this one goes to check the names on the gravestones. I knew Kaoru- _dono_ 's father had passed away but I had no idea so were the rest of her family."

"Exactly two years ago, the Kamiya family was on a cross-country trip as a celebration for Kaoru's acceptance as a professor in the university…b-but a freak car accident happened," she recounted, her eyes unusually soft and her voice lacking the typical sharpness Kenshin was familiar with. "Her father, mother, two younger siblings Mayan and Jirin, all of them were dead-on-the-spot. That was how I met her, I was one of the emergency medical personnel that attended the crash. Kaoru would never admit it, but I know, I know, inasmuch as she tried to hide it from everyone, that deep inside she still sometimes blames herself and wonders why she didn't just die along with the rest of her family."

"Kaoru- _dono_ has always seemed so strong," Kenshin said more to himself than to her; he bowed his head so that his bangs covered partially his eyes, "and she is."

Megumi hummed in agreement before saying "Indeed she is, that _tanuki_ can stand her ground in any adversary andhas emotional fortitude and will incomparable to anyone else's…but that doesn't mean she doesn't get lonely from time to time."

The 32 year-old doctor smiled reflectively, one that Kenshin had never seen in all the times that she and Kaoru were at the restaurant. They always seemed to be quarreling about petty things; the older woman had strong opinions ever ready at the tip of her tongue: from Kaoru's boring, never-changing hairstyle, her open abhorrence of wearing high heels, and to the occasional less ladylike manners. Megumi was not a typical friend, but a friend nonetheless, this Kenshin had surmised.

"I am needed at the hospital." Sighing, Megumi readjusted the coat on her shoulders and started to leave. "I know this is none of my business, but Ken- _san_ …," she murmured cautiously, voice strained by some hesitance.

"Try not to shut her out. She needs you," a pause and then, "as much as you need her."

* * *

The sky was blurring into gradients of orange and blue as twilight came. Kenshin walked back, steps heavy with weariness and heart even weightier as newly learned information swirled in his head. He looked up ahead at the dimmed restaurant and was able to make out the "closed" neon signage,but even more noticeable was the lone figure standing in front of the establishment's _shoji_ doors.

"Kaoru- _dono_ ," he whispered into the increasing darkness.

April 18. Words spoken earlier echoed loudly in his mind.

 _We all have things in the past we don't want to talk about._

 _I need to do something for Jou-chan today._

 _I did not want her to come here alone._

 _She needs you as much as you need her._

"Aoshi told me you've been out for most of the day, but…I wanted to see you so I decided to wait here," she walked up to him, they met under the soft, slightly feeble glow of a streetlamp. Kaoru smiled slowly, the authenticity of it was dearly inviting, the movement of her cheeks creased the corner of her eyes and Kenshin didn't hide from her the way he studied her face. He saw for the first time in her azure eyes, covered in very sheer film of unshed tears, some of her ancient silent misery, but still…still also in them were a persistent strength, an earnest acceptance, and maybe a dawning hope.

He reluctantly broke eye contact and retrieved the keys from his inner coat pocket. Before he could stop himself, he took her hand, refusing to meet her questioning eyes as she faintly gasped. Wordlessly, she followed as he slid open the doors at the entrance. He groped for the light switch on the wall before ushering her in; Kenshin immediately set out to prepare a meal behind the counter while Kaoru sat on a chair near the wall, looking at him.

"Can I help?" she finally asked after a few moments of companionable silence.

"Of course. Here, Kaoru- _dono_ , will you please slice the _chashu_ into thin strips? Or thicker ones if you prefer them."

She walked eagerly behind the bar, stood beside Kenshin, and accepted the cutting board and the _santoku_ that were gingerly handed to her.

Her arm brushed lightly against his and Kenshin didn't try to suppress the small smile that mechanically graced his lips.

They could be alone, he and Kaoru- _dono_ …but they were together now and everything suddenly seemed all right.

* * *

A/N: All of _Rurouni Kenshin_ characters (from Kenshin, Kaoru, Sano, Yahiko, Megumi, to Aoshi, Misao) if we look really closely at them and their development, in all of their lives or at one point, they have been _utterly_ alone and I have always loved the idea of these people, who think they are the only ones left in the world, slowly opening up, learning to depend on someone other than themselves, and finding companionship among each other. They came together and their lives changed forever.

Thank you for your time. Don't forget to tell me what you think!


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